“You’re viewing a pair of Griffon vultures,” sounded her companion’s deep voice. “They would be extinct by now if there weren’t forest preserves like this to provide needed habitat. Along with the Black and Egyptian vultures, they’re one of the most endangered species of raptors in the world.”
“No wonder you love to come here! I feel like I’ve gone back in time. I wish I had my sketch pad with me.”
“Wait till you see the Imperial eagle.”
“Is that the one you have emblazoned on your plane?’ She was still looking through the field glasses.
“So you noticed.” He sounded pleased.
I notice everything about you.
“Well, it didn’t look like an American bald eagle, so I figured it had special significance.”
“You don’t miss much.”
Not when it comes to you.
“Once when Leonides brought me here, we found an Imperial eaglet that had been poisoned. We notified the authorities and they took it to the bird hospital. After it recovered, we were allowed to watch it from the observatory when it was returned.”
She swallowed hard. “That must have pleased you both.”
“We were very happy. My brother felt it was important to fight for their preservation.”
“So you took up the cause. What a perfect way to honor his memory.” She handed him back the binoculars and put her glasses on. “Does your nephew know about that story?”
He stared at her with brooding eyes. “No. In the beginning, I found it too painful a subject to talk about. I realize it’s another oversight I intend to rectify if it isn’t already too late.”
“I don’t imagine it’s ever too late for a son to hear something truly wonderful about his father.”
She saw his throat move before they continued the last of their climb side by side.
“You had a happy childhood, didn’t you, Alexandra.”
“My parents are loving people who gave me and my sisters a wonderful life.”
“Is that the reason why you don’t talk about it around me? Because you’ve learned enough to know mine was less than idyllic?”
No. It was the fear of loving him too much when she knew it was one-sided that kept her silent, but she couldn’t let him know that. With his all-seeing gaze focused on her, she started to feel nervous.
“I guess I’ve been too busy being your secretary to realize much of anything else. Where did you say that observatory was?” Their conversation was getting too personal.
“Along another path. It’ll be closed today, but we have our own binoculars and can stop there on our way down to watch the raptors feed.”
The next three hours were sheer delight for Alex. They ate by the ruins of a Byzantine castle on top of the peak, then made their descent. Dimitrios identified fifteen endangered species for her, including the Imperial eagle.
Almost at the bottom, she thought she heard music and stopped along the trail to listen.
“It’s the wedding party. See that little meadow through the trees? They must have arrived from the village church.”
Her breath caught in her throat to witness the joy of a radiant bride in her wedding dress with a crown of flowers in her hair, dancing with her dark-haired groom.
In the background their friends and relatives clapped and cheered to the music while the little children played.
Tears sprang to Alex’s eyes. “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”
The scene before her was too painful to watch because she wanted to be that bride smiling into her husband’s eyes. She wanted that wedding to be her wedding. She wanted Dimitrios for her husband. To have and to hold. Forever.
“I agree that village weddings tend to have a certain charm,” he murmured. “Come stand over here where we can see better.”
Needing to touch her, he grasped her shoulders from behind and moved her off the path where they could remain hidden behind the undergrowth to watch. But it was a mistake.
There was no way he could focus on the bridal party when the intoxicating scent of pear from her shampoo made him want to take down her hair and bury his face in it.
Like before, on the plane, Dimitrios was aware of the superb mold of her body. Considering the eighty-degree heat, it came as a shock to discover she was trembling. He knew she wasn’t afraid of him. Was it desire she felt for him?
If that were the case, then her struggle to conceal it made her different from all the other females who’d come on to him since his teens. She was that rare woman he never expected to meet.
Earlier that morning he’d awakened full of determination to keep her at a professional distance. Yet here he was, held in the grip of sexual desire, wanting to turn her around so he could kiss her senseless.
He knew he should be feeling guilty for spending time with her in activities that had nothing to do with business. For that matter, he should never have insisted she stay at the villa. But it was too late for that now, too late to remember the vow that no woman would entice him to bed before marriage.
He wanted, needed Alexandra in all the ways a man could want a woman. He’d fallen in love with her….
“I—I hope you don’t mind if we hurry back to the lodge now. All of a sudden I’m fading fast.” She eased away from him and started down the path.
Dimitrios followed at a more leisurely pace, wondering if guilt over betraying Michael or Yanni had caused her to put distance between them. Determined to find out, he closed the gap.
“You’re reading my mind again. An early night is exactly what I need, too.”
She slowed down before darting him a backward glance. “Are you feeling dizzy?”
“No. Only pleasantly tired.”
“Somehow I don’t quite believe you. Thank goodness the lodge isn’t very far now. That backpack must feel heavy.”
He waited for her to say he could lean on her, but the offer didn’t come.
Because she didn’t trust herself to get that close to him again?
Desperate to know the answer to that vital question, an idea came to him how he could discover the truth.
Filled with a sense of anticipation for the evening ahead, Dimitrios walked her toward the lodge. The pines cast their long shadows across the path. His heart thudded to realize evening had crept up on them without him realizing it. He would have her all to himself.
It didn’t matter that there were cars in every parking space. The wedding guests would stay occupied for hours, leaving him and Alexandra strictly alone.
“Do you mind if I stretch out for a few minutes?” he asked as soon as he let them inside the room.
She looked at him in alarm. “Are you feeling sick? Sometimes a cola helps. I could ask for one at the lodge.”
He loved it that she showed this kind of concern for him. It staggered him how much he loved her.
Shaking his head, he said, “I’m sleepy. That’s all. If you want to shower, go ahead. The concierge said they’d bring dinner to our room. I’ll call the office now.”
After putting his backpack on one of the chairs, he laid down on one of the twin beds and picked up the receiver to order their meal. Through veiled eyes he watched her reach for her suitcase.
“I’ll hurry,” she murmured